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Avenger
More commonly known as the Avenger, this is a build which focuses on causing elemental damage, but not sacrificing the great balance the paladin can have. It is based on the skills Vengeance and Conviction, but like other builds, other skills become important for a successful Paladin. Stats Strength: Vengeance does not apply Strength in calculating for elemental damage, so you should put only enough points to wear your equipment. Dexterity: You have two options. The first, and most popular, is to use a shield and put enough points for a 75% block chance (keep in mind you're using holy shield before testing). The second, you wield a two-handed weapon, but you'll do decent damage even with one-handed weapons and the benefits of a good shield are hard to pass up. Vitality: Vitality is an important stat, you should put all your unneeded points in it, but it's a question of your playstyle. Energy: You shouldn't spend any points here, as you will have decent mana at higher levels. However, you may find the skill to be mana intensive at the beginning or with a heavy investment, so Mana leech or items that give mana per kill will help offset this unless you plan to respecialize later. Skills Skill points This is a tight build. You have four synergies, not to mention the usual skills that round out a successful paladin. The Conviction aura is also a preferred choice, and you'll probably want to sink 20 points in that as well, as there's no mana cost and you can break immunities more effectively and override other conviction-using monsters. Holy Shield is also a good choice unless you've settled on a good two-hander. Primary Skills: Vengeance: The main attack skill of the build, deals elemental damage with each succesful strike. Maxing out this skill and its synergy skills is important. However, in early stages of the game, investing a few points in the elemental resistance auras may be preferable to maxing out vengeance as the mana demands of this build can be somewhat high. Conviction: Your main aura. Further increasing your damage by lowering enemy resistances and defense rating, although there are certainly times when another aura becomes appropriate. In PvP it is mainly used when the enemy does not have high elemental damage, and to increase your chances of hitting. Salvation: Salvation is handy when you are not certain what sort of elemental damage you will be encountering. Random duels, vampires and wisps in the same area, for example. On the other hand, Salvation will only donate a total of 6% elemental damage per point, where the resistance aura donates 10% and Vengeance will add a total of 18%. Elemental Resistance Auras: These are useful for more than one aspect. The first is in knowing what enemies are spawned in an area, you can soak damage that would be lethal in other cases, the wisps in the Worldstone Keep, for example. The second is the hidden bonus to your maximum resistances. You receive +1% for every point (up to 95%) and also transfers to your party members. Secondary Skills: Smite: Some points in Smite can help you much in PvP or in boss fights. Without any synergy - except bonuses from Holy Shield - it's not hard to get a semi-powerful smite. Holy shield: This is one of the most useful skills the paladin has, increasing your shield's block chance, smite damage and your overall defense rating. Meditation: '''Not everyone uses an Insight runeword on their mercenary. This is also handy for Mana Drain monsters. A handy 1 point wonder. '''Redemption: '''If you are concerned about corpses, especially when you're facing Bone Fetish monsters in the same area as Horadrim Ancients without any help from Druid Vines or Corpse Exploding Necromancers, this skill can be used to clean up the corpses in the area. It also donates Health/Mana immediately. Another handy 1 point wonder. Equipment There are two main ways to equip your character: First is using one-handed weapons with shields, it is reliable and highly recommended, because Vengeance do insane amounts of damage and your character will need the protection that a shield can offer. Second is the using of two-handed weapons. It is not recommended, but it is still possible to play in this style, but you'll need the highest resistances - including psychical. In this case, Crown of Ages and Guardian Angel are must needs. Weapon: I'd use a 4 slot sword using Voice of Reason runeword. Incredible ice dmg and also improves cold resist reduction. If the guy's not impossible to freeze, he's dead. Helm: '''Crown of Ages: Your main weakness which is easy to forget is your physical resistance, because you doesn't have physical resistance at all without the proper equipment. Should be your main choice if you can afford it, socketing with min-max damage jewels, Ber runes or IAS jewels are all good options, depending on other items. Andariel's Visage: It is one of the obvious choices, due to it's poison resistance, but even with it, your poison resistance still remain to be one of your two main weakness. And it can look stylish on any other character but a paladin. Still it's a good choice, socket it to your liking, fire resistance is not a must in it, but it is still useful. Vampiregaze: With dualleech and psychical resistance on it, you shouldn't have much problem after you get this nice helm, works well on every melee fighter. Still it looks hideous for a paladin. Griswold's Valor: If you can get the whole set, than Griswold's Legacy is more than enough for you. Of course only for shield-users. The crown by itself is not that powerful, but it's sockets make it highly versatile. Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest: Strong dualleech, life, mana, resistances. These make the famous sorceress set's head piece a real strong helm for any melee fighter. Armor: Guardian Angel - gives + to all skills and %15 to all maxium resistences, plus has good defence and attack rating bonuses. Shield: Alma Negra Sacred Rondache since it boosts your skills. use one slot from act five and put a perfect ruby here so you won't suffer from Andy's negative fire resistance. Gloves: Soul Drainer Vambraces is great! Mana and life steal will help you very much and the reduction it causes to enemy's defense + conviction is desolating. Belt: Verdungo's Hearty Cord Mithril Coil has awsome damage reduction, and vitality bonus. Definetely the best for anyone who's not Zon/Sorc. String Of Ears for the same reason as some wear verdungo's, great damage reduction but much easier to get. Boots: Gore Rider War Boots would be my choice. Sandstorm Trek is nice, but you ain't running that much! Gore Rider provides three great atk mods: Crushing blow, Deadly Strike and Open Wounds all in a row! Amulet: Crescent Moon: The Cat's Eye: Highlord's Wrath: Mara's Kalaidoscope: Rings: Bul Kathos' Wedding Band: Manald Heal: Mechanics Vengeance: Vengeance is a skill that adds elemental damage to every successful attacks. Vengeance does use these modifiers in calculating the elemental damage: 1. - Enhanced or min/max damage from socketing in the weapon. 2. - Min/max damage from socketing in off weapon equipment. 3. - Min/max damage from items or charms. 4. - Weapon and item added damage that reads "adds xx damage" such as Butchers pupil, War traveller boots and Blood Fist gloves. Vengeance does not use these modifiers in calculating the elemental damage: 1. - Auras enhanced damage such as Might or Fanaticism. 2. - Weapon added damage that reads "damage + xx" such as Grief rune word and The Redeemer. This has been tested in game to not work. 3. - Factors such as Deadly Strike, Open Wounds or Crushing Blow. 4. - Strength. Vengeance works from weapon damage only. 5. - Off weapon enhanced damage such as socketed jewels or Lion Heart, Fortitude or Duress rune words. Conviction: Conviction is a neccessary for causing the highest possible damage with Vengeance, since it reduces the resistances of enemies, some important points. 1. - Conviction is capped at -150% which is reached at slvl25. 2. - Conviction can break immunity, but when breaking an immunity, it will only function at 1/5 effectiveness. Immunities: 1. - Immunities are resistances over 100%. Lowering a resistance below 100% breaks the immunity of the target and it becomes vulnerable to the specific damage type. 2. - With more resistant lowering effects working at the same time - such as Conviction and Lower Resist -, only the strongest one tries to break immunity, if it fails to lower the resistance below 100%, than the other effects will not be used in further calculations. 3. - Player character cannot become immune to any damage type, though resistances can be increased over 75%, there is no way to increase any resistance over 95%, it is the final cap. Category:Paladin Builds Category:Paladin Category:Builds